SC Oklahoma News

Washington, D.C. – Congressman Tom Cole (OK-04), Congresswoman Dina Titus (NV-01), Senator Markwayne Mullin (R-OK) and Senator Jacky Rosen (D-NV) yesterday reintroduced the bipartisan, bicameral Medical Student Education Authorization Act, to authorize the Medical Student Education (MSE) Program through fiscal year 2025. The MSE Program provides grants to public institutions of higher education to expand or support graduate education for physicians in states with the most severe primary care provider shortages. First created in 2019 by Congressman Cole and former Senator Jim Inhofe, the MSE Program is currently subject to annual authorizations, which results in significant uncertainty over funding and long-term planning for funded institutions.

“It is well known that medical students and residents are likely to practice in communities similar to their own and to ones similar to where they were trained,” said Cole. “By offering medical training and education in rural, tribal and underserved communities and focusing on recruiting students from these areas, the Medical Student Education Program works to place providers in these communities long-term and ensure access to quality health care. One key indicator of the program’s current success in tribal communities is the fact that nearly half of medical students self-identifying as Native American are enrolled in a medical school participating in this program. I am thankful for my colleagues’ continued support on this critical legislation and look forward to working with them to move this bill across the finish line and bring relief to areas that face severe healthcare provider shortages.”

"We need a whole-of-government approach to address the physician shortages plaguing communities here in Nevada and across the country. By supporting medical student training in underserved areas, we can invest in the next generation of providers while improving care access and patient outcomes,” said Titus.

"Many Oklahomans have to travel long distances to see their primary care provider at small, rural hospitals or IHS and Tribal-run facilities," said Mullin. “Over the past few years, our communities have faced a growing physician shortage that is making it more difficult for rural, Tribal, and underserved areas to receive proper care. Our bipartisan bill will authorize the MSE Program to support graduate education for physicians in states like Oklahoma to ensure rural Americans receive the care they need. I’m grateful to Rep. Cole, Rep. Titus, and Sen. Rosen for their partnership in reintroducing the Medical Student Education Authorization Act.”

“The shortage of physicians in Nevada continues to impact our communities and threatens our communities’ access to quality medical care,” said Rosen. “I’m introducing bipartisan legislation to incentivize the next generation of doctors to come learn at one of our medical schools and then stay in Nevada to practice. This will help increase the number of doctors in states like ours and expand access to quality medical care.”

This legislation is endorsed by a number of stakeholders, including the American Hospital Association, who offered the following praise for the bill:

“There is an urgent need for more physicians to serve in rural America to help address patient access issues and improve health care outcomes. The American Medical Association is dedicated to addressing the root causes of health inequities for the rural patient population, and this bill would help remove challenges to health equity in tribal, rural, and medically underserved communities,” said American Medical Association President Jack Resneck Jr., M.D. “We commend the sponsors of this bipartisan bill and look forward to supporting it as it moves through the legislative process.”

“We appreciate that your bill would expand training for medical students and reinforce academic medicine’s efforts to train culturally conscious providers who can identify and better address challenges to health equity in under-resourced communities…The bill's grant program has demonstrated effectiveness as an important complement to other programs that successfully recruit and retain medical professionals in under-resourced and historically marginalized communities, and we welcome the bill's unique efforts to further reinforce these goals and develop strategic partnerships in communities with the greatest unmet need for primary care providers,” said Association of American Medical Colleges Chief Public Policy Officer Danielle Turnipseed, JD, MHSA, MPP

“The American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine (AACOM) applauds Representatives Cole and Titus and Senators Mullin and Rosen for reintroducing the Medical Student Education Authorization Act,” said Robert A. Cain, D.O., American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine President and CEO. “With nearly 60 percent of osteopathic physicians practicing in primary care, increasing residency opportunities through the MSE Program helps ensure that graduates from colleges of osteopathic medicine have more opportunities to train in communities where their skills are needed most. AACOM is proud to support this bipartisan bill that would increase access to care in tribal, rural and medically underserved communities.”

“Boosting our primary care workforce, including pediatricians, is vital for children to grow into healthy adults,” said Mark Wietecha, CEO of Children’s Hospital Association. “We are grateful for Reps. Cole and Titus and Sens. Mullin and Rosen’s work through the Medical Student Education Authorization Act to ensure communities in most need of providers, including pediatricians, are prioritized.”

"National Rural Health Association (NRHA) applauds Representatives Cole and Titus, and Senators Mullin and Rosen for introducing the Medical Student Education Authorization Act. Since the Medical Student Education (MSE) Program was first authorized in 2019, it has made a profound impact on training physicians in rural communities. We know that physician's training experiences in rural communities result in higher practices rates in rural areas. Passing a five-year authorization of the MSE Program, as this legislation does, will be helpful for stabilizing the depleting workforce in rural communities. Strengthening the workforce is a top priority for NRHA. Programs like the MSE Program are critical to ensuring rural communities have the workforce they need to provide services for their residents," said Alan Morgan, Chief Executive Officer of the National Rural Health Association.

"This legislation would benefit Tribal health programs by increasing the number of Indian health providers and providing training to better serve American Indian and Alaska Native patients. This bill provides grants to higher education institutions in states with severe health care provider shortages. The emphasis on partnerships between these institutions and Tribal nations, integrating behavioral health into primary care, and addressing health equities will complement Tribal nations' efforts to enhance their health care delivery systems. We call upon Congress to pass this legislation and get it signed into law this year," said Chairman of the National Indian Health Board, William Smith.

"Chronic underfunding of the Indian Health Service has created challenges for urban Indian health clinics to recruit and retain providers. The Medical Student Education Authorization Act supports strategic partnerships between urban Indian organizations and higher education institutions and will increase the number of healthcare providers with experience working with Native communities in urban areas. NCUIH is grateful for Rep. Cole’s leadership on this issue," said National Council of Urban Indian Health CEO, Francys Crevier (Algonquin).

"Oklahoma's physician residency programs are of the utmost importance right now, especially considering the current strain on the healthcare workforce across the board. The Oklahoma State Medical Association (OSMA) enthusiastically supports enactment of the Medical School Education Authorization Act which will help solve the persistent primary care provider shortages in Oklahoma. The majority of physicians practice in the same state they did their residency. Supporting residency programs now trains young doctors who will be the future of healthcare in Oklahoma." said Oklahoma State Medical Association President Diane Heaton, MD.

“We welcome this support to increase physician access in rural Oklahoma. Oklahoma currently ranks 42nd in the nation in primary care providers and this bill will focus on states such as ours with the most severe primary care provider shortages,” said Patti Davis, President, Oklahoma Hospital Association. “Physicians are the lifeblood of the communities they serve and we know that when physicians train in rural areas, they are more likely to stay and practice in rural communities.”

"Oklahoma’s Tribal, rural and medically under-resourced communities have a desperate need for comprehensive access to interdisciplinary primary care services that are focused on prevention and health promotion. To help meet this need, the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine is dedicated to enhancing the primary care experience for our students. Our curriculum and community partnerships across the state allow students to learn about the needs of Oklahomans living in these communities. Further, our success in recruiting and retaining students from across Oklahoma, including under-represented areas, is helping to secure a brighter future for our state, as these students are more likely to remain in these areas for their careers. We want to thank Congressman Cole, Congresswoman Titus, Senator Mullin and Senator Rosen for their leadership in helping us continue to expand these educational opportunities, which will ultimately help us improve the health and quality of life of all Oklahomans," said John Zubialde, M.D., Executive Dean, OU College of Medicine.

“When we launched our partnership with the Cherokee Nation to establish the first tribally affiliated medical school in the nation, we knew it was a big, audacious goal. But it also made perfect sense. Rural and tribal communities are perhaps the greatest areas of need in our state and serving them directly fits squarely within our mission of providing health care for rural and underserved communities throughout Oklahoma. Support such as the MSE program is critical to our work and ultimately makes a big difference in the lives and health outcomes of Oklahomans," said Dr. Johnny Stephens, President, OSU Center for Health Sciences.

"In 2024 we will be graduating the very first class from our Cherokee Nation campus of the OSU College of Osteopathic Medicine. As the first tribally affiliated medical school in the nation, the pride we have in our program is immeasurable, and the impact those students will make on rural health is even greater. Programs like MSE are game changers for us, allowing the expansion of medical education and clinical training opportunities into areas where it’s most needed – rural and tribal communities,” said Dr. Natasha Bray, Dean, OSU College of Osteopathic Medicine at the Cherokee Nation.

“I can think of no greater use for MSE program funding than here in Oklahoma, where we are hard-hit by primary care provider shortages across our state. This funding allows us to fulfill our mission of training physicians for rural and underserved areas with a level of excellence few medical schools in the nation can match. At the OSU Center for Health Sciences, our medical students embody this mission, and I could not be prouder of the impact they will make on our state and nation,” said Dr. Dennis Blankenship, Dean, OSU College of Osteopathic Medicine.

Original source can be found here.